Griffins and grapes

Courage, chivalry and determination. These are the characteristics of the students sorted out to be a member of the Gryffindor House, one of the four houses at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry Potter and his pals are the foremost Gryffindors, fiercely competing with the rival house Slytherins.

Harry Potter did not have it easy to be a part of the house. It was the sorting hat that decided who went to which house, and it definitely had a tough moment to decide on the destiny of Harry Potter.

The hat trembled and shook, and hesitated for a moment and finally told Harry Potter: “You might belong in Gryffindor; Where dwell the brave at heart; Their daring, nerve and chivalry; Set the Gryffindors apart.”

It was the right choice. Harry Potter could not be a true hero if he was not from the Gryffindor House. The symbol of Gryffindor is the lion, its colors red and gold, and it represents the element fire; all representing power, passion, perseverance and persistence. All the virtues of the house come from the mythological creature Griffin that is the symbol of power. Griffin is also about safeguarding, and it protects the site of Metropolis in Turkey, which is close to Ephesus, near Torbalı. Griffin is half-eagle, half-lion; with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion, it rules the sky and the land. Metropolis had a particular significance; it was the city dedicated to the Mother Goddess, Mater Gallesia.

Torbalı is a small village in the Aegean, literally an agricultural paradise. Its bounty has been famous throughout antiquity, while the city of Metropolis practically fed the great city Ephesus; it was a small but powerful stop on the trade route halfway between Ephesus and Sardis. According to...